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Uniting to PREVENT Human Trafficking & BRING Hope to Survivors

CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFING

AEHT and NAC are concentrating efforts to pass three meaningful pieces of legislation -
these bipartisan bills build on the foundation of human trafficking policy, raise up the pillars of support for survivors, and strengthen the protective layers against online predators
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
9:30 am - 11:00 am
Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2255

Free and open to the public

Join Us

Members of Congress, their staff, members of the media, and allies are invited to learn more on the harms of human trafficking and hear about three bills before Congress that would better protect people in the United States from human trafficking and improve supports for survivors. 
The Alliance to End Human Trafficking (AEHT) (formerly U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking) and the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd (NAC), continue our work at the federal level to end human trafficking, keeping the needs of those vulnerable to being trafficked and those who have survived at the forefront of our work.

Honorary Co-Chairs

Our 2025 bi-partisan honorary congressional co-chairs are:
Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-TX)
Congressman Greg Landsman (D-OH)
Congressman Ted Lieu (D-CA)
Congresswoman Maria Salazar (R-FL)
Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ)

Call to Action

Contact your Members of Congress. 
Stay Tuned.

Share on Social.
Click here for our digital toolkit to share graphics and posts urging passage of these bills preventing human trafficking and bringing hope to survivors.

Speakers

Sister Sally Duffy, SC is a Sister of Charity of Cincinnati, Ohio and has served as President/CEO of the SC Ministry Foundation in addition to various administrative capacities including hospital President/CEO and VP Student Affairs/Dean of Students. Currently she serves on several boards including the Alliance to End Human Trafficking, where she is board chair. Sister Sally was honored in March 2022 by the Mayor and Cincinnati City Council for her leadership in reducing poverty.
​Cristian Eduardo is an advocate, speaker, and educator for anti-trafficking initiatives and immigrant and LGBTQ+ rights. A Mexican immigrant, he is a survivor of international and domestic sex and labor trafficking. Cristian serves on the U.S. State Department's Advisory Council on Human Trafficking and also on AEHT Survivor Advisory Council. 
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Sister Maryann Agnes Mueller, CSSF is a Justice & Peace Leader and authors the Stop Trafficking Newsletter. A Felician Sister, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Master of Science in Nutrition and served as a registered dietician. Most recently, she has faithfully served as the Justice and Peace Coordinator for the Felician Sisters of North America in Enfield, Connecticut where she edits the justice and peace newsletter. Sister Maryann Agnes serves on several boards and was a founding board member of the U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking, now the Alliance to End Human Trafficking.
Heather Heiman, Esq. is a survivors’ advocate and works for the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service (MVLS) where she manages its pro-bono program for human trafficking survivors. She provides direct representation and facilitates case placement with volunteer attorneys through MVLS’ pro bono network. 

Legislative Focus

Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2025 (TVPRA)  (H.R. 2961): This bill builds on the foundational, landmark Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) designed to prevent modern-day slavery, protect victims, and enhance civil and criminal penalties against traffickers. Unfortunately, the TVPA has not been reauthorized for several years.
 
The Frederick Douglass TVPRA would reauthorize domestic provisions of the last TVPRA along with International Megan’s Law requiring advanced notification of traveling sex offenders. The bill also provides for education prevention grants serving a high-intensity child sex trafficking area or an area with significant child labor trafficking. In addition, H.R. 2961 offers wrap-around social services and education to prevent child trafficking through social services support for the attainment of life-skills, employment, and education necessary to achieve self-sufficiency.
Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2025 (H.R. 1379): A person being trafficked for labor or sex often is trapped in a cycle of exploitation. They are forced by their traffickers to commit crimes, and historically they have faced arrest, conviction and incarceration with no attention being given to their circumstances.
 
H.R. 1379 takes mitigating circumstances under consideration and would enable survivors’ criminal records to be vacated or arrests to be expunged for nonviolent crimes such as financial fraud, drug-related offenses, and identity theft.
Kids Online Safety Act (S. 1748): The internet, devices, and applications are tools with great benefits and tremendous risks, including sexual exploitation and human trafficking. Over the years, much has been promised and little has been done by technology companies to protect children from predators on the internet.
 
S. 1748 would hold tech companies accountable for duty of care on their platforms. It also would give tools to parents and children, while increasing transparency so children may be safe in their virtual spaces.

Human Trafficking is a Crime Against Humanity

On July 30, we recognize World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. We are forced to confront the chilling reality of this heinous crime that takes place all over the globe, including in the United States.
 
Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery that involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to exploit another; to obtain labor or a commercial sex act. It is a crime under both U.S. and international law, and a crime against humanity. It dehumanizes and commodifies human beings, depriving them of their dignity, persons made in the image of God. And it denies their human rights: the right to life, security, freedom of movement, and the freedom from torture and degrading treatment. It is antithetical to the tenets of our Catholic faith and the values of this nation.
 
The nature of human trafficking makes it difficult to accurately describe its scope and number its costs. The National Human Trafficking Hotline reports that, “[d]espite growing awareness about this crime, human trafficking continues to go underreported due to its covert nature, misconceptions about its definition, and a lack of awareness about its indicators.” (National Human Trafficking Hotline)[1] Given recent trends in technology, the involvement of organized crime, and the variety of labor, sex, and other trafficking offenses uncovered by law enforcement, we know the methods and perpetrators can vary widely. This crime takes place anywhere, and people from all walks of life and backgrounds can fall prey to human traffickers.
The 2024 Global Report on Trafficking in Persons[2] reports that in 2022 there were 74,785 people ‘detected’ as victims of human trafficking – a significant 43 percent increase compared to 2020. In 2022, children accounted for 38 percent of victims ‘detected’ globally. Detection is the result of actual cases from police or authorities around the world. It does not reflect the actual prevalence of the crime or the hidden number of victims of commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, organ trafficking and forced marriage. How many remain undetected?
 
The International Labour Organization[3] estimates that traffickers collect approximately $236 billion in illegal profits every year.
 
The elimination of human trafficking must be a priority. Every life is a gift from God and is sacred. Every human being deserves to be protected and nurtured. We each have a responsibility to do our part to prevent human trafficking.

 Awareness / Education
Watch this video of Good Shepherd Sisters combating sex trafficking in Thailand.